Training Day
by merciki
Summary: It's the second tuesday of the month. It's training day for our marshals. Submitted for the LJ Month of Mayhem. Rated T because, well, it's Mary !


**AN : Huge thanks to JMS529 for beta-ing this story .**

**I can't help but put a bit of France in my stories – Hope you'll forgive me …**

**Training Day is … a training day for our favorite marshals, just because this idea was in my head for a while, now. **

**Oh. I own nothing. Really. I just use IPS and everything in this story for amusement purposes. **

**Training Day **

Tuesday, 5th April 2011, Albuquerque, NM.

US Marshal Mary Shannon was drinking her third mug of coffee when she heard the sound of the horn. Sighing, she put her cup in the sink, made her way to the door, grabbed her badge, gun, jacket and bag and went outside. Her partner's truck was waiting for her in front of the door, engine still running. Typical, he didn't want to loose any time.

"Hey Doofus. Some would say that keeping the engine on would contribute to more pollution on the planet," she said, closing the door and fastening her seat belt.

US Marshal Marshall Mann smirked at her before answering "Do you know there is much more emissions of carbonic gas in starting an engine than staying in park even? It has been proven by all the studies."

She gave him her don't-start-with-your-trivia-it's-only-8.30am look before sighing. Her hand went straight to the SUV cup-holder, where her favorite coffee was waiting for her.

"Why did you bring coffee?" Mary asked, suspicious.

" Ah, Mare, always the kind words. Instead of 'thank you Marshal for bringing me my favorite coffee ' I get the sneaky remark." She rolled her eyes, and Marshall went on. "You realize it's the second Tuesday of the month, don't you? And you know what this means?"

She sighed, obviously pissed of, "Training day. I hate training days. Why do we need to run, jump, and fight?"

Marshall smiled "You forgot shooting! I thought it was your favorite part! You know why we have to do this."

Mary took a sip of her coffee, which was indeed her favorite of the moment. She sing-sang, "so we can still be Marshals and perform at whatever requalification or tests they might put us through. Doesn't mean I have to enjoy it."

Marshall was now smiling widely. "Come on, Mare, you enjoy it every time. Showing our colleagues you can beat them, and I don't mean the girls. You are better than most of the men." He was right, of course. She could take on any other female, even the younger ones from Phoenix. As for the men, she could compete with most of them , and sometimes even beat them. There was only one man she never succeeded in beating. And he was sitting right beside her. She smirked.

"You're thinking you can beat me this time? No way. I've been practicing." Marshall replied.

She smiled at him widely "Yeah, with me. So I know your tricks. I can beat you this time."

They stopped at a traffic light. Marshall turned his head "You want to bet? "

Mary's grin grew wider "You're on. 20 bucks?"

He smiled back at her, before starting to drive along. "How about the loser treats the winner, to a fancy dinner? And that doesn't involve going to Paso Tacos. Good restaurant, good wine, everything. Even a skirt for you if I win".

Mary stared at her partner, abashed. "A skirt ? Why not a dress and heels, moron? This means that when I have won this bet, I can make you take me anyplace to eat? Good, you're on. And be ready to pay."

He smiled, wider if possible. "If I have to pay a lot, it means a fancy place. So it means a skirt. You won't be allowed in Antiquity in jeans, Mare. … "

She sighed. "Okay, then, skirt involved, if you wear a tie."

He nodded, "Agreed."

Marshall carefully took a turn before parking the car in the Sunshine Building parking lot. Mary took her time to finish her coffee before asking

"So what's the program for today? And whose asses will we have to kick?"

They made their way to the basement of the building, to the practicing room, where they were expected to train in combat, and martial arts.

"You know who's coming, Marshall, so spill it."

The tall man made his way towards the men's changing room, and had his hand on the doorknob when he finally told her " I think, among others, Stan.", as he went through the door, leaving Mary smiling.

_God, this was going to be fun, after all! _Mary thought.

-o-o-

They were all practicing moves when the US Marshal appointed trainer stopped them.

"I thought today we could add a bit more fun. We will split the pairs, and take turns for a little tournament. Everybody's in? "

There were moans, smiles, nods, but finally everybody agreed to take part in the tournament. Mary not being the last one in.

"So, here are the rules," said Hank Calloway, their instructor. He was built like a rock, but could move with the grace of a ballerina." Two of you on the tatami, no matter the gender, the winner advances to the next round. Everything is authorized, but hitting the face and sensitive parts, if you get my point. Let's grapple."

Mary was to fight a new marshal in the building, a Patrick Meare, from Phoenix.

Marshall leaned to her, whispering in her ear "You'll have it. You saw him when he sparred with Ellersby. He doesn't protect his right flank. He thinks he can have anyone with sheer force. Should be easy."

Mary nodded her agreement. She had noticed the same thing. She was tying her hair into a ponytail when she asked her partner, "who did you draw? "

He smiled, "Ellersby. Poor thing, he will not like what I intend to do to him." Mary's smile matched his.

"Again? Don't be too rude on him this time, or else we'll have his witnesses to take care of. And they are worst than mine. Who's got Stan?"

Marshall didn't need to answer, as Stan was making his way to the mat, being joined up by a younger woman.

"Oh, this is going to be fun, indeed," said Mary, rejoicing in seeing their boss fight.

Mary and Marshall sat on the edge of the mat, to watch the first fight, between Stan and Tina Davis, the young Marshal he had raffled.

"10 bucks on Tina" whispered Mary.

"You're on. Prepare the money", replied her partner.

"No way Stan is going to win her over. She's young and flexible, and Stan is old and "… Mary did not get the chance to finish her sentence. Stan had just thrown Tina down with a beautiful o-soto-gari.

" Black belt, 5th dan in Judo, Mare. 10 bucks for me. Did you know that the colors of the belt were invented in England in the twenties and then brought to the world? "Marshall added, before rising up. It was his turn to fight. He made his way to the middle of the mat, to meet his opponent. They both shook hands before taking a few steps apart.

Mary always enjoyed watching her partner fight or train – unless she was the sparring. Her partner was tall, strong, with sharp muscles and a lot of people made the mistake to underestimate his strength. Years of practice of martial arts, of training, and running have made a complete athlete of him. He was fast, precise, flexible, and Mary usually didn't like fighting him. It often resulted in finding herself on the floor, with bruises and aching after a fight that often lasted less than a minute. And Ellersby knew that too. And he was already afraid of his opponent, Mary could tell. "Going to be easy, partner... ". And it indeed was.

Ellersby had decided to attack with a swift movement, Marshall moved out of his line, grabbed the wrist of the poor marshal, and Mary knew it was over. She knew her partner would bring Ellersby down with an arm lock. It was almost too easy. Ten seconds later, Calloway indicated Marshall as the winner. Ellesby was laying down massaging his right arm. Two women rose to take place on the mat. Marshall sat beside Mary.

"You ready, Mare? Don't forget, his right flank, your left hook. " he whispered.

She rolled her eyes " Yes, I know, Doofus. I've seen it too. The problem will be to get to his right flank, actually."

Marshall looked at her, chuckling." No doubt you will find how to kick him. But not in the groin, remember?"

Mary sighed, pouting. "Why do they take all the fun out every time ?" she said, rising up, as the previous combat was over. She saw her opponent, a mountain of muscle, a rock, but with a weakness. She just needed to exploit that weakness.

Stan had come closer to Marshall " Do you think she will make it? "

The lanky man smiled at his boss "She'll do whatever is possible to beat _me_, Stan. Even if that implies getting rid of this Neanderthal mountain. She already saw the flaw in his defense. She'll do whatever is necessary to achieve her goal."

Stan sighed, before looking at Marshall. "She still hasn't defeated you, has she?" asked Stan. He knew from deep down that one of the reason Mary had accepted Marshall as his partner, was because he could kick her butt and not only verbally, and be more than a match to her, the FTF US Marshall, trained to combat and fight.

-o-o-

"How much longer, Doofus? " asked Mary. Her cheeks were red from the effort she was making to cope with Marshall's faster speed, and her breathing was hard.

"Half a mile, Mare. Look at the bright side, after that the day's nearly over! And you don't have to follow me, the standards aren't the same for the men and women, you know," he answered, not at all bothered by the fact that he was running too.

"S'okay, I can keep up with you" she whispered, breathing harder.

Marshall was thinking of the end of the tournament. As predicted, he had to face Mary in the last round. She was the one to get rid of Stan, which she did after a long and fierce fight. Having recorded that Stan was a judo expert, she did not allow him any hold on her, to prevent being thrown down. She managed to beat him by fainting to fall on the ground and making Stan stumble. She then prevented him from moving by placing all her weight on him and restraining his hands.

They had fought one other as if their life depended on it. Marshall didn't want to push Mary in the beginning, but she didn't let him go easy on her. She fought with all she had. Lower gravity center, techniques of jujitsu he showed her, tactics and everything she learned to be a US Marshal. Marshall, at first, only reacted to her punches and moves, without making a single attack. He knew what she was trying to beat him. She managed to get a hold on him at one point, and came closer to his ear before she whispered.

"I want to beat you, Marshall. But not like this. You'd better fight back if you want to see me wearing that little skirt of mine I intend to put on when you take me to Antiquity".

The thought of Mary wearing a leather skirt showing her long legs came to his mind, and was all he needed to turn into a fighter. They would both have bruises and sore muscles for days to come. And once more, he had won.

He didn't understand why she wanted to keep up with him for the run. She knew he practiced every day, on a two mile routine. He also knew she didn't like running. So why in hell would she follow his pace? He smirked. _Let's see if you can follow me if we go a bit faster, Mary Shannon_. He sped up, an evil grin on his face. He knew she would give him hell for it, but she wanted to make it a competition, didn't she?

It didn't take long for Mary to realize what her partner had just done. Her face was red, and sweat was rolling down from her hair to her back. She felt as though she was breathing hot air, and couldn't help but notice the little smile on Marshall's lips when he turned his head to see whether she was following him or not.

Mary went deep down to take all her courage and pride, and succeeded in rejoining him.

"You're so going to pay for it, you moron! Antiquity, full menu and wine. Lots of wine," she whispered. Marshall accelerated again. She couldn't speak anymore but mentally added "and the cab home, you, dork … "

There was no way he would win this round too. She knew she couldn't run as fast as Marshall for a long time, but she also new that the finish line was close. Mary felt her heart beating faster and faster, and thought at one moment it would break out of her chest. She wasn't going to let him take too much of a lead as she didn't want to pay for the restaurant, and was ready to have a heart attack just after finishing if needed.

Seeing the finish line, she forced her heart, nerves and sinews to serve her long after they were all exhausted just to make one final effort. Mary succeeded in crossing the line in the same stride as her partner, but only to fall on the ground out of exhaustion.

"Mare are you okay?" Marshall was at her side, his voice full of concern, helping her to take a breath while bringing water to her mouth. She opened her eyes, and nodded

"Everything's fine Doofus. Got you on this one. Prepare to pay." Mary managed to come to a sitting position, and breathed calmly, in order to restore a steady heartbeat, or at least try to do it.

"You're dreaming, Cowgirl. We were on the same stride, so I guess we're equals".

No way Marshall would give her one point. But, right now, as she was sitting on the ground, trying to catch her breath, sweating, red from the effort, he couldn't help but find her beautiful and couldn't help but being proud to be her partner, as she gave all she had to maintain his pace. He couldn't dream of having someone better to have his back. _And to hold my back, if she only wanted_ , he thought, grinning

"You know you didn't win this one, do you, moron? You told me, the standards aren't the same for men and women. I might have beaten my best score right now. Prepare to pay, Cowboy, cause there's no way you're better than me at shooting." Mary was grinning. She was absolutely exhausted, but Jesus, Mary and Joseph, to see his smile fading a little was so worth it .

"If the two of you have finished playing, maybe we can make it out of here and head to the shooting range" Stan asked, still wearing his running shorts. "You've got a bet going on, don't you? Why can't you both just once act as normal as everyone else?" Stan asked shaking his head, looking at his two Inspectors. This pair was one of the best in the whole country, but nobody would have guessed it at first sight. They were sometimes behaving like children in kindergarten.

Stan was wondering what the prize was for the bet, since Mary nearly spit her guts out doing this run. It certainly wasn't "The Song" bet, and he would have to figure that out soon. He could also be tricky and was a fairly good interrogator. Having a goal in mind, well, that just added to the fun.

" Come on, children, time to go !" Stan yelled, clapping his hands while urging them to go to the locker rooms to get changed for the shooting range.

-o-o-

"Does."

"Doesn't !"

"Does! "

"Doesn't..."

"Will the two of you stop for one minute? Aren't you supposed to concentrate a little bit?"

Stan looked at Mary and Marshall, who were currently arguing on an important problem – to know whether or not Kim Callers, from the accounting department, was a real blonde. Of course, this was taking place in the middle of the shooting range, while the both of them were preparing their weapons for their turn. Mary would be the last to shoot, and Marshall the first.

Marshall took his Glock, checked the ammo, and made his way to the range, while silently mouthing "Does! I saw it!" to his partner.

Mary was left speechless at what he had just implied. Marshall couldn't suppress a smirk at Mary's facial expression. He quickly took that thought away to concentrate on what was at hand. He needed to shoot perfectly if he wanted to win the bet. Mary was an excellent shooter, just like him. And he wasn't ready to give her an opportunity not to wear a skirt. _Mann, don't start thinking about Mary in a skirt, showing her legs, else the holes will be in your feet rather than in the target._ He took a deep breath, put the earmuffs on, and focused only on the paper target in front of him. Less than one minute later, all his bullets were in the 10. Marshall unloaded his gun before holstering it, removed the earmuffs, and made his way to his boss and partner.

" Well done, Marshall," said Stan.

Mary looked at him, abashed, before turning to the tall man smiling "Your shots are still slightly deflected to the left, moron. Told you so many times, and you don't correct it. You're so gonna pay this time." she smiled, thinking already of all the courses she would eat at the restaurant.

Not one to let her have the last word, he sighed and told her "I do not deflect on the left. Try to adjust your hands properly on the butt of the gun, cowgirl. It might help you target better".

Mary pouted, but kept quiet to watch Stan shoot. "Not bad, you can still manage to hold a Glock, Stan" she told him when he came back to them.

The bald man turned to her "When I will need your opinion on my capacities, Inspector, I will ask for them."

Marshall gave her his best exasperated look. She sighed and started to pout, raising her hands and mouthing "what ?". Her partner took her arm, and drew her aside.

"You'd better hope to have a full 10, otherwise I think Stan will give you hell for some time!"

Mary rolled her eyes, took a hair band out of her jeans pocket to tie her locks in a ponytail, before she looked at Marshall.

"How would I not score a full 10 at only 20 meters? I could do this with my eyes closed!"

This was a bait Marshall couldn't resist. "You want to bet? You shoot on my terms and if I win, not only will you wear a skirt, but heels and make-up too!"

Mary lifted her eyebrows "If I win, you're on for two meals at Antiquity."

Marshall nodded his agreement.

Stan looked at both of them, abashed "You're making all this fuss for _a meal _? Oh, God help me, what will you do when there is something serious at stake, like, I don't know, money ?".

Mary looked at her boss, smirking, with a spark in her eyes." Oh, if there's money involved, I'm sure you won't want to know Stan..." she said in her best seductive voice. Marshall began to laugh.

Stan could only mutter "children... and I'm too old to be a nanny" . His quiet words were not lost on anyone's ears, and he winced when he heard his senior inspector, the calm and quiet man say to Mary "I would so love to see Stan dressed as a nanny. And maybe send a picture to Eleanor".

Mary burst into laughter at the image, but was being called to shoot at the same time.

-o-o-

Friday, 8th April 2011, Antiquity Restaurant, Albuquerque, NM.

"This is so good ! You can tell what you want about French, how pissing, stubborn and pretentious they are, but when it comes to food, they're really, really good." Mary was savoring every single bite of her main course.

"You want to taste the Pork Normande, Mare? It's full of cream too. Delicious. "

Marshall was really enjoying his evening so far. He dropped by Mary's place at seven, to pick her up for their dinner , and would forever remember the way she looked that evening. She invited him in, as she was finishing getting ready, and he had his own keys. He sat at the island of her kitchen, surprised she wasn't ready yet. He usually didn't have to wait for her when there was food involved, but lost any notion of time when she came out of her bedroom, wearing a dress. Marshall's mind missed a gap connecting the stunning woman in front of him to his partner and the woman he secretly loved.

Mary was wearing a green knee-length dress, the shade matching the color of her eyes, with a cut revealing a little cleavage, but only to have a man want to see more. Her hairs were loose, falling on her shoulders naturally, and yes, she wore make-up. Her necklace shined in the light.

"Happy with what you see, Moron? Can't believe I lost to you at the range. God I swear, next time, we bet on my terms, and I'll win."

Marshall was struggling to breath, and to speak, but he knew he had to come to something before being bickered at for lack of words.

"I thought the terms were that you should wear a skirt, Mare? "

She rolled her eyes, chuckling " You'll have to deal with a dress. Think you can cope?"

_Oh, yes_, Marshall thought, he could definitely cope with Mary wearing a dress like this, "That will have to do. Let's go, or we're going to be late."

Mary had noticed the look in Marshall's eyes, and how he took her all in with those blue eyes of his. A warm look that, showed how beautiful she looked to him. _I've never seen him look at me like that_, she thought, _but come on, it's Marshall, it's Doofus. Actually, nobody ever looked at me like this._

She held his gaze, "You're not looking too bad yourself, Doofus." and smiled. He was really looking good in a dark black suit with fine gray scratches on it, a white shirt and a tie, but not the one he used in a courtroom, and which perfectly suited his suit. The cowboy boots were gone too, replaced by elegant shoes. _Jesus, look at the size of his feet, Mary_. She grabbed a black jacket and made her way to the door, her partner still sitting at the island.

"And don't look at my ass, Pervis."

But Marshall couldn't help watching it, as the dress she wore perfectly fitted her forms, leaving him breathless.

Mary turned slowly towards him, grinning "And don't forget to breath."

He grinned, stood up and made his way to her, opening the door with an "After you, Miss Shannon", that made both of them laugh, and they headed straight to the restaurant.

A few heads, both feminine and masculine, watched Mary and Marshall when they entered the restaurant, and followed them till they reached their table. Both were oblivious to the stares, as they were still discussing their witnesses and planning their next transport.

-o-o-

"Oh, crap, this is going to cost a arm, but it's really worth it." They were going through their desserts, when Mary seemed to realize she'd have to pay the bill.

" Come on, Mare, we can share," Marshall offered, always the gentleman. She shook her head no, and he was abashed at the reflections the light was making off her hair

"No, Marshall, a bet is a bet, I lost this one, it's on me."

He sighed, and was about to answer when something caught his eyes.

Mary saw her partner tighten and his gaze fixed on something behind her shoulder, before assessing the restaurant room they were in. He then took her hand in his, intertwining their fingers, and slightly leaned towards her, and whispering with a chuckle "Ready to play the damsel in distress?"

Mary rolled her eyes. Years of practice, of partnership have both told them to feel the danger when it was close by. She immediately understood her partner's behavior, and even without seeing the scene, knew what was going to happen. She leaned in a little closer to Marshall

"And why in hell do I always have to play the damsel, moron?"

Marshall came even closer and kissed her cheek.

"Because a dress like this one don't usually suit me well, baby. I'll call ABQ PD, three men in the back, on the way to the women's restroom. Your move, milady."

She smiled fondly at him " You really know how to talk to girls, Marshall Mann".

Mary rose from her chair, and headed towards the restroom, making sure to look at the faces of the three men Marshall had previously spotted. She had the same feeling of danger he had, and made sure to assess all three of them. She couldn't suppress a grin from her face, and turned to nod at her partner sitting at their table and waiting for her confirmation. Marshall drew his Blackberry and placed a quick call, before starting to wait, a smile on his face. He couldn't wait to see Mary in action and couldn't help but wonder where under the dress she kept her weapon. Ideas of the location of said weapon flew to his mind, but he needed to forget them if he wanted to be of any help in what was going to happen. He saw the men moving towards the counter, and Mary getting out of the restroom at the same moment. She purposefully hit one of the guys in the shoulder, the one they both had spotted being the most nervous.

Mary was muttering a "sorry, sir", but he was already grabbing her by the arm, and aiming his gun with the other, while saying loudly "Nobody moves. This is a hold-up".

Mary rolled her eyes and looked at Marshall, who was grinning at seeing her playing the damsel in distress, and moved his hand to urge her to play on. He saw her pouting a bit before she resumed her game of poor-and-afraid-woman-caught-in-the-middle-of-a-fight. Which she wasn't.

"Oh, no, do not hurt me, please !" she whined.

Marshall had started rising from his chair, playing the game on his part and trying to come closer to Mary while assessing the other two guys. They both had drawn their weapons and were standing in front of Mary. The tall one was looking over the room of the restaurant.

"Please, do not hurt my fiancée … I'll give you anything..." Marshall told the tall man, a frighten look in his eyes.

Mary rolled hers, recognizing oh too well the look in her partner's eyes. Messy Marshall. This was going to be fun, she thought, while signaling to him that she would take the tall one, leaving him the two others. He nodded his agreement and made his way to the two guys clumsily, pretending to loose his balance.

Mary sighed " So easy, Marshall, I'm a bit disappointed", while throwing her right elbow into the tall man's stomach and aiming at his wrist to disarm him. Her partner had already knocked down one of the guys, but the other one struggled a bit more. Mary took her assailant's arm and threw him over her head in a beautiful Kokyu nage.

"You've been practicing your moves, Mare? But it lacks a bit of grace to fully make your energies concord. You know that originally, concordance means putting…" he drew a punch at the guy he was fighting, "the hearts…" dodged one, " together," he finished his phrase and knocked down the bad guy at the same time. He showed his badge to the Manager of the restaurant, and told him the police was on their way.

"Nerd" Mary whispered, while unloading the tall man's gun, and pulling up her dress to retrieve her spare gun, wrapped around her thigh.

"No need, Pervoid, and stop looking at my legs" she shouted at him.

He was unloading the other men's guns too and taking his secondary which was around his ankle.

"I'm not the one stripping in the middle of a restaurant Mare. I guess it's a public place, so I have the right to watch."

Mary rolled her eyes and sighed " When does ABQ PD show up ? I'm tired of doing their job! And if I have to strip, it's all your fault."

Marshall turned his head to her, surprised, but still holding the two men at weapon's length "How can it be MY fault that you are stripping in the middle of a restaurant?".

Mary shot him her most mischievous smile " You set the terms of the bet, nitwit." Marshall sighed at the blond woman, standing in the middle of the restaurant, with almost every man's gaze on her while the women were looking at him, bantering as if they were in the office in one of their spitball fights.

People around them were staring at them, stunned. They barely had time to understand a theft was happening when the lanky man and the blond woman took the situation in their hands. They were relieved to see them showing their badges, and even more relieved to hear the sirens of ABQ PD.

Det. Abigail Chaffee came in, gun in hand. She spotted Mary first, leveling her gun at a man on the floor, then at Marshall taking aim at two men.

"Ah, here come the monkeys, Doofus." She turned to talk to Det. Chaffee. "They tried to rob the place while we were having dinner. There are around 50 people who saw what happened. Guess you won't need our testimony."

Abby made her way to Marshall "You're okay Marshall? "

He gave her a small smile. "Everything's fine. Can you take them from here? "

Abby nodded her agreement as Marshall holstered his weapons. He returned to the table to grab his vest, followed by Mary. She went to pay the bill, but the manager dismissed her, telling their dinner was " in gratitude for the US Marshals for helping stop the robbery ".

-o-o-

"Well, that was fun" chuckled Marshall, once they were back in his truck, on their way to Mary's place. "I'm always fond of a little entertainment while eating. Just like in Europe in Middle Age, when they had the acrobats and jesters and musicians. It eases the digestive process".

Mary shook her head, smiling "Yes, I always know how to treat my guests." There was a question she really wanted to ask Marshall, though " Abby seemed quite surprised to see both of us at the restaurant. You didn't mention our dinner to her ?" _here it was …_.

Marshall turned his head slightly towards Mary, before focusing on the road. _Should I tell her?_ _Would it change something ?_ He saw from the corner of her eyes Mary closing her arms, and sighing, _patience is not one of a virtue_...

"Abby and I called it quits a few weeks ago." He briefly closed his eyes, waiting for the sharp comments that would come without any doubt.

"I'm sorry, Marshall. Are you okay with that? And why didn't you tell me?"

That was a surprise to him . A kind Mary.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I guess we didn't have much a chance to make it work. Anyway. I wanted to ask you something, actually."

She lifted one eyebrow " Shoot, Cowboy."

Now he was struggling for the words. _Come on Mann, else you'll be called verbally impotent, again. How would she react ?_

"Well, I was wondering, why do you absolutely want to beat me at every practice we make?"

She looked at him, then turned her head to stare through the window of the SUV. She whispered a answer awkwardly.

"I don't want you to think I'm a burden and not being able to watch your back, so I guess that if I manage to defeat you one day, you won't have any doubts regarding my abilities to protect you anymore."

He stopped the car, and made Mary turn towards him. Of all the things he could have thought of, this one was the one that never came to his mind.

"Mare, I don't need you to defeat me. I have no doubt you have my back anytime anywhere and anyhow. Do you think we would still be partners if I didn't think that? "

She shook her head no, tears in her eyes at the trust he had in her, despite Raph, despite Faber, despite everything she had done wrong all through these years, he still trusted her with his life.

"But it's good for my ego to be the only Marshal West of the Pecos who still hasn't had anyone beat the ass off of by you."

She smiled through her tears. "Ass."

Marshall took her in his arms, her head resting on his chest, and said in her ear. "Yes, but I'm _**your**_ ass".

Mary lifted her head and met Marshall's gaze. His blue eyes were fixed on hers, telling her so many things he didn't dare to say yet, and waiting for her. She slowly closed the gap between their faces and let her lips touch his. Mary felt him smile under her mouth, and felt him kissing back, smooth lips on hers, discovering, licking, nipping, and felt a warmth igniting in all different parts of her body. They finally pulled away, sparks in their eyes, smile on their faces, fingers intertwined, and a little out of breath.

Marshall leaned on her, to kiss her earlobe, and managed to whisper "We definitely have to do that again. And you still owe me a dinner."

**That's it. I borrowed some of Kipling's words .. because I love his poem. Hope you don't mind, Rudyard **

**Hope you liked it ! Do not hesitate to review **


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